Best for best, Hamed was the better fighter. He had incredible skills and reflexes. He was on the slide against Barrera. That wasn't the same fighter who was outclassing top opposition from 94-99. Yes, he went down in a few of those but he was never shook up. It was balance because of the awkwardness of what he was doing. And he would close the show conclusively. Johnny had better longevity - bizarrely as Naz was teetotal and Johnny really wasn't. Beat better fighters closer to their primes and went through weights from 115-130lbs beating top men. So, while Hamed at his utter best was better than Tapia at his absolute best, the greater fighter was Tapia.
What exactly did Tapia do that was so great? He beat Romero and Arthur Johnson, and retread versions of Medina and Cesar Soto. I don’t really see that as being better than what Hamed did.
It depends how you judge 'greatness'? Is it a Tyson whose star shone brighter than all others, but for a brief moment? (Like Hamed) Is it a Roy Jones whose star also shone brighter than anyones, only to flicker into erratic defeats? Or is an ATG someone who has a complete body of work, never achieving the stunning brightness of other fighters, but is amongst the best till the end? If it is 'a blinding brightness', Roy, Mike, Naseem, may have no peers, in modern times. .
I couldn’t stand Hamed and whereas he wasn’t quite elite and I rate below the likes of Barrera, Morales and Marquez I wouldn’t have him below the likes of Johnny Tapia.
Beating retreads is something that Naseem is often accused of, too. Beating Danny Romero, moving through weights and having greater longevity than Naz gives him a slightly greater career. If we say Romero was Tapia's best win, what was Hamed's? Look, I think Hamed was a once in a generation talent but I have to judge his greatness on what he did not what I think he could have done with that set of skills, speed, reflexes and power. Because the reality of his achievements falls short of what I was expecting.
Bungu beat Romero. Hamed starched him. I actually think Bungu’s resume is fairly competitive with Tapia’s. Bungu, Tom Johnson, Kelly, the Pocket Rocket, Medina, and Robinson were all at least pretty good. Soto had a title. Sanchez didn’t pan out after Hamed laid him out, but he was a good am. I’m not saying Romero wasn’t at that level, but I think Hamed was beating guys at a higher level more consistently than Tapia. I guess Konadu was alright. I’m not familiar with him.
